Trump 'being investigated for obstruction of justice'

Reuters cited a source which confirmed the Postreport, adding that an examination of possible obstruction of justice charges was "unavoidable" after former FBI Director James Comey told Congress he believed he was sacked by Trump to undermine the agency's Russian Federation investigation. Former FBI director James Comey assured him three times that he was not. "Nice", Trump tweeted, later repeating his accusation that the probe is a "witch hunt".

Mr Rosenstein took over the investigation into whether Russian Federation tried to tip the USA election in favour of Mr Trump after Attorney General Jeff Sessionsrecused himself in March.

But Rosenstein is not now heading the FBI's probe into the Trump campaign's possible collusion with a Russian campaign that US intelligence officials have said was seeking to tilt the outcome of the 2016 election in Trump's favor.

Eight hours later, after a busy day meeting governors and witnessing the formal investiture of his pick for the Supreme Court, Trump returned to the topic again in two tweets suggestingHillary Clinton, his Democratic opponent in the election, should be under investigation instead of him.

"The FBI leak of information regarding the president is outrageous, inexcusable and illegal", Mark Carallo told the Washington Post".

Regardless of the outcome, the spectre of Mr Mueller examining the possibility of obstruction of justice appeared to be a new blow to Mr Trump, whose first five months in office have been clouded by the federal and congressional probes into the Russian Federation issue.

In addition, officials also said investigators have been looking for any evidence of possible financial crimes among Trump associates.

In a second tweet, Trump touted his "powerful" presence on social media, despite widespread criticism that his recurring rants on Twitter and other online media have only compounded his legal and political problems.

Trump's tweet Friday reflected the first official confirmation that he is being investigated by the special counsel for the reasons he fired Comey last month.

The Post quoted five people briefed on the requests, saying those who agreed to be interviewed include national intelligence director Daniel Coats, Admiral Mike Rogers who heads the NSA, and his recently departed deputy, Richard Ledgett.

The latest media reports say the obstruction of justice investigation began just days after Mr Trump fired Mr Comey on 9 May. President Trump said he had fired the Federal Bureau of Investigation chief because of the "Russia thing".

The Washington Post reported Thursday that Jared Kushner's business dealings were also being scrutinized by Mueller's team. As CNN Politics reporter Chris Cillizza noted, it will be much harder for Trump and his colleagues to dismiss the FBI's probe into Russia's involvement as unnecessary meddling.